Gold mining restricts Amazon rainforest recovery

Date:
June 29, 2020
Source:
University of Leeds
Summary:
Gold mining significantly limits the regrowth of Amazon forests,
greatly reducing their ability to accumulate carbon, according to
a new study.

The researchers warn that the impacts of mining on tropical forests
are long-lasting and that active land management and restoration
will be necessary to recover tropical forests on previously
mined lands.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
Gold mining significantly limits the regrowth of Amazon forests, greatly reducing their ability to accumulate carbon, according to a new study. The researchers warn that the impacts of mining on tropical forests are long- lasting and that active land management and restoration will be necessary
to recover tropical forests on previously mined lands.


==========================================================================
Gold mining has rapidly increased across the Amazon in recent years,
especially along the Guiana Shield, where it is responsible for as much
as 90% of total deforestation. The Shield encompasses Guyana, Suriname,
French Guiana, Venezuela and small parts of Colombia and northern Brazil,
and its forests hold roughly twenty billion tonnes of aboveground carbon
in its trees.

The ability of tropical forests to recover from gold mining activities
has remained largely unquantified. Now, an international study led by
the University of Leeds is the first to provide detailed field-based information on the regeneration of forests in Guyana after gold mining,
and the first ground- based estimate of carbon sink lost as a result of
gold mining activities across the Amazon.

The team's findings, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, found
that forest recovery rates on abandoned mining pits and tailing ponds
are amongst the lowest ever recorded for tropical forests. At some sites
there was nearly no tree regeneration even after three to four years
since mining had stopped.

They estimate that mining-related deforestation results in the annual
loss of over two million tons of forest carbon across the Amazon. The
lack of forest regrowth observed following mining suggests that this
lost carbon cannot be recovered through natural regeneration.

Lead author Dr Michelle Kalamandeen, began this research as a postgraduate researcher in the School of Geography at Leeds she is now a postdoctoral researcher at Cambridge University. She said: "This study shows that
tropical forests are strongly impacted by mining activities, and have
very little capacity to re-establish themselves following mining.



==========================================================================
"Our results clearly show the extraction process has stripped nitrogen
from the soil, a critical component to forest recovery, and in many
cases directly contributed to the presence of mercury within neighbouring forests and rivers.

Active mining sites had on average 250 times more mercury concentrations
than abandoned sites.

"Not only does this have serious consequences for our battle against
global warming by limiting Amazonian forests' ability to capture and
store carbon, but there is also a larger implication of contaminating
food sources especially for indigenous and local communities who rely
on rivers.

"A positive finding from this study shows that overburden sites, areas
where topsoil is deposited during the mining process, recorded similar
recovery rates as other Central and South American secondary tropical
forests abandoned after agriculture or pasture.

"Active management and enforcement of laws is clearly needed to ensure
recovery and to safeguard communities and there are methods available,
such as replacing the soil using the overburdens at abandoned sites. But
there is an urgent need for large-scale recovery management to be tested
and implemented.

"We could be facing a race against the clock. The current crisis is significantly increasing the demand for gold, given its perceived role
as an economic stabiliser. With current gold price more than US$1700
per ounce and estimated to reach US$2000-3000 in the coming months, many artisanal and small- scale miners are already rapidly responding to this increase in pricing, and the weakening of environmental laws and policies
as we've seen in Brazil, leading to further deforestation in the Amazon."
The team used forest inventory plots installed on recently abandoned
mines in two major mining regions in Guyana, and re-censused the sites
18 months later.

The study analysed soil samples and determined individual trees'
above-ground biomass -- the tree's living plant material -- to determine recovery and chemical changes caused by mining.



========================================================================== Their results suggest that forest recovery is more strongly limited by
severe mining-induced depletion of soil nutrients, especially nitrogen,
rather than by mercury contamination. The high rate of mercury does
however have serious implications for negative impacts on food security,
water supply and local biodiversity.

Study co-author, Dr David Galbraith, Associate Professor in Earth System Dynamics at Leeds, said: "Currently approximately 1.3 million square
kilometres of the Amazon is under prospecting for mining activities.

"This research provides support to local and national governance
structures to critically approach policy implementation and development
for land management, including how and where mining occurs, and more
stringent monitoring and action for forest recovery. It shows that
carefully planned active restoration projects will be critical in
this regard.

"But responsibility lies beyond remediation efforts to mitigate the
damage done. Investors and consumers alike need increased awareness
and accountability of the environmental footprints of gold mining."
The Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) who supported the fieldwork
are optimistic that the results from this research will help in making
more informed decisions for their reclamation policies and programmes, monitoring and enforcement.

Mr Newell Dennison, Commissioner of the GGMC said: "The research results
showed two important aspects: that overburden areas recovered relatively
well and there was limited recovery in mining pits and tailing ponds. The latter being areas where we need improved management. The more data we
can accumulate for recovery of secondary forests in mined out areas,
the better we are all positioned for the implementation of effective
programmes and operations that aid in the recovery of our rainforests. We
look forward to working with Dr Kalamandeen and her team in the future."
The Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) expressed gratitude and appreciation
to the research team for the important and impressive empirical work
done in [this] paper.

Mr Gavin Agard, Commissioner of the GFC said: "We expect that this
scientific work has greatly improved Guyana's baseline and understanding
of the forest degradation impacts of mining with respect to biomass
recovery and sets a foundation for more dynamic, focused studies to
advise planning and policy for improving secondary forest growth and
restoring biomass capacity.

"The findings and recommendations from this study will significantly
impact policy and management strategies for forest restoration and rehabilitation in mined-out areas, which is a key objective for Guyana
under the Paris Agreement of the UNFCCC.

"The contribution of deforestation and degradation to climate change
cannot be ignored, and thus we welcome the contributions of this research
team to build and improve our communal knowledge and understanding of
our changing forests as we continue to pursue the highest standards of sustainable forestry in Guyana."

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Leeds. Note: Content
may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Michelle Kalamandeen, Emanuel Gloor, Isaac Johnson, Shenelle Agard,
Martin Katow, Ashmore Vanbrooke, David Ashley, Sarah A. Batterman,
Guy Ziv, Kaslyn Holder‐Collins, Oliver L. Phillips, Eduardo S.

Brondizio, Ima Vieira, David Galbraith. Limited biomass recovery
from gold mining in Amazonian forests. Journal of Applied Ecology,
2020; DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13669 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200629090012.htm

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